About Church of Sweden Youth
Church of Sweden Youth is the organisation for children and young people within the Church of Sweden. By becoming a member of Church of Sweden Youth you will experience Christian fellowship in every possible way. Church of Sweden Youth wants to be a place for growth where you are allowed to be yourself. And, perhaps above all, have fun while serving God!
This is how we describe ourselves: ”Church of Sweden Youth is an open fellowship of young people who want to discover and share the Christian faith”.
Church of Sweden Youth is a movement within the Lutheran Church of Sweden, for children and young people. The movement is characterised by its multiplicity of activities. There are many ways to work for God by singing or playing, working with environmental issues, social work or renewing the forms of worship. Whatever your choices are, there is room for you in Church of Sweden Youth.
Our members are between the ages of 0 and 30, but Church of Sweden Youth also welcomes people over 30 as non-voting ”adult members”. Young or old – we believe everyone has a mission to fulfil. In 2016 we had about 14 000 registered members of different ages, and are reaching many young non-members through our open-door activities.Church of Sweden Youth is always on the move, a democratic movement formed by its members.
Church of Sweden Youth was founded on January 1. 1993. Before this date the child and youth work within the Church of Sweden was organised by different organisations. Gradually the organisations started co-operating and the idea of a new, unified organisation developed. After several years of dialogue a new organisation was founded – Church of Sweden Youth.
The local branches (Lokalavdelningar)
The local branches are the foundation of Church of Sweden Youth. Anyone who shares our vision is welcome to join a local branch. A local branch within a congregation may consist of only one youth group while others consist of all the children and youth groups within the congregation, for example the children’s choir, middle-school groups or a teen bible study group.
The districts (Distrikt)
The Church of Sweden is divided into 13 dioceses. These 13 dioceses are paralleled by what we call our 13 districts. The district’s function is to be the link between the local branches and the national organisation. The districts are also responsible for supporting the local branches in issues like communication and leadership education. Furthermore, the districts arrange camps and other opportunities for the members to meet. Each district has a district board, which is elected by members of the local branches at the district’s annual meeting.
The national level (Förbund)
Church of Sweden Youth has a national organisation, the purpose of which is to support the districts. The national level is also responsible for acting on the guidelines and decisions taken by elected representatives from the districts the National Annual Meeting in between each such meeting, for example by initiating projects, co-operation with other organisations, publications and leadership education. The national level consists of a president, a national board, elected at the National Annual Meeting, and a national office. The national office is located in Uppsala and employs 8 people.
Do you have any questions? Contact us by email: unga@svenskakyrkan.se, or give us a call at +46-18-640 640.